Aerosol valve



April 14, 1959 w. H-.sT. GERMAIN 2,881,808 AEROSOL VALVE Filed April 26. 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 l@ 16 26173| I 30 /31 t 29 26 gg 21 2g ,5. L i x 2o @2gj@ l@ 19 16 2% 157' 25 l1 6 'Z7 3 5 2o. 10 6 f 23 1 9 L xl 11 7 j l* 5 Lage-nm l lo wm'o 6% @fraai/,Q 9 11/ @6d/1&2,"

v Aprilr `14, 1959 v w. H. sT. GERMAIN 2,881,808

y AEROSOL VALVE Filed April 2e. 1954 2 sheets-sheet 2 L P- dw 25' 15 -/ZO 21 l l 22. @E 6 %15 33 ,l Y' am 1@ I 7 1 y 5g v 24e y 2@ 5 27 I l Z5 lrf" Vlg .6 JZ 1o 27g/idw 1, Y l0 f/l 5 WmdJQ/wtmawb United States Patent AEROSOL VALVE Wilfrid H. St. Germain, Batavia, Ill., assgnor to Aerosol Research Company, a corporation of Illinois Application April 26, 1954, Serial No. 425,450 s claims. (ci. 141-21) ICC Z Fig. 4 is a cross sectional view, taken along the line 4-4 of Fig. 2;

.Fig 5 is a fragmentary cross sectional view with the valve pressed vertically downward to open position;

' Fig. 6 is a cross sectional View, taken along the line 6-6 of Fig. 5;

holding a mixture of an active liquid and a propellent (a mixture of a liquefied gas and gas under pressure). When the valve is opened the pressure of the propellent propels the active liquid through the discharge orifice of the valve which is restricted sutiiciently to cause the active liquid tobe atomized as a vspray into the surrounding atmosphere. The active liquid may be dispersed in the air or it may be deposited on a surface against which it is directed. p

Valves of this type are generally provided with a housing mounted adjacent the top 4of the container. The valve has a tubular valve stem which extends through the top of the containeryand a sealing gasket is provided to prevent leakage of the contents of the container when the valve is closed. Since the contents of the container include a gas underr considerable pressure it is essential that the seal be airtight and similar devices-heretofore used'have -had `comparatively `complicated structures lin order to provide the necessary security against leakage". -In accordance with theA present invention the valve stem Fig. 7 is a fragmentary cross sectional view of the valve in open position to permit pressure filling of the container to which the valve is applied;

` Fig. 8 is a detail perspective view of the valve housing with a portion cut away to show the interior structures; and

Fig. 9 is a detail perspective of the valve.

In the drawings, the reference numeral 2 indicates a container of any suitable material provided with a centrally disposed boss 3 projecting upwardly therefrom. It is obvious that the shape of container 2 is not important, but boss 3 serves as a convenient means of supporting a valve housing 4. In the embodiment illustrated, housing 4 is provided with an annular shoulder 5, and boss 3 is provided with an inwardly extending circumferential rib 6 which serves to hold the valve housing in place. Valve housing 4 is open at its top, and its bottom wall 7 has depending therefrom a tubular extension 8 which con stitutes a flow channel. A dip tube 9, secured at its upper end to extension 8 in any suitable manner, extends downwardly intoproximity to the bottom of container 2. The outer surface of depending tubular extension 8 is provided with. an annular rib V10 which is engaged by dip tube 9 to prevent the dip tube from sliding ot extension 8. In-

stead of using a single annular rib to keep tube 9 in enbuilt up portion 11 is shaped annularly with a short veris-of uniform diameter,A so `that the sealing gasket may 'I hug it tightly, regardless ofthe angle=towhich the valve may/be 'pressed in order to open it for discharge-ofthe" contents of the container-'through the discharge orificeof the valve stem. When the valve stem' is pressed lateral-4 ly to open the valve the 'sealing gasket is not flexed to any substantial extent, and the gasket is not subjected to the fatigue which occursl when the sealing gasket must be flexed considerablyl every l time the valve 'is openedl or closed; Sealingl gaskets that are flexed to a substantialv extentevery time-.fthevalve is operated may lose' their comparatively' The structure by which the above and other advantages; of the invention are vattained will 'be described in th'e valve stem. has t another tical wall portion 13` forming a guide for positioning a coiled compression spring 14 on the seat. Valve housing 4 is also provided with a plurality of vertically ex tending interior ribs 15 extending from the upper` edge of built up portion 11 to the upper edge of the valve housing'. The upper edge of valve housing 4 is spaced a short distance below the top wall 16 of boss 3, and a sealing gasket 17, positioned on top of the upper edge of thevalve housing, engages the lower surface of topv wall 16.. Top wall 16 is provided with a centrally disposed opening 18, and gasket 17 is provided with an opening 1,9,slightly smaller than opening 18 and aligned therewith. -A valve body 20, positioned in housing 4, has a stem 21 projecting upwardly through openings 19 and 18. The

I outer diameter of stem 21 is of a size to be tightly hugged following 4specilicatior1,taken in conjunction with the.- I

accompanying drawings showing 'a preferred illustrative embodiment of the invention, in which:

l Figure lis a side elevational view of la container'to which an aerosol Fig. 2 is .a fragmentary'cro'ss sectional view"through an aerosl valve embodying the inventiomthe valve beingJ shown in closed position;

. Fig. 3 is aview, similar to Fig. 2,1showingthe spray' tip pressed laterally and the valve in open position;

valv-embfdymgthe mventlfQPhas-.beeg i' 'i valve stem 21. Rim 25 and shoulder 26 both seat against by the edge of sealing gasket 17 defining aperture 19.

Valve stem 21 is provided. with a longitudinal bore 22.

terminating within valve body 20. 'Valve body 20 is j shaped like the frustrum of an inverted cone and is cut away to provide a shoulder 23 forming a seat for the upper end of spring 14.

The `diameter of the upper end of valve body 20 is substantially equal to the distance between the inner edges of diametrically opposite ribs 15 so that the ribs act as a guide when valve body 20 moves vertically upwardly, to insure proper seating of the valve body against the: underside of gasket 17. The top surface of valve body 20 is recessed to form `an annular groove 24 leavin g athin annular rim 25 and a shoulder 26 adjacent the underside of sealing gasket 17. Valve body 20 is provided with an internal orice 27 extending from the bottom of groove 24 to bore 22, and forming a passageway between the interior of valve housing 4 and bore 22 when the seal between rim 25 and sealing gasket 17 is broken.

A spray tip 28 is mounted on valve stem 21 and is provided with a terminal orifice 29 connecting bore 22 with 'discharge opening'30. Spray tip 28 engages the top edge of valvestem 21 so that vertical pressure exerted downwardly on the spray tip forces the valve stem downwardly. The bottom of spray tip 28 is spacedrvabove ytop wall'16 a distance' suicient to allow for downward move: ment of the spray tip and valve stem. The spray tip maybe of 'any desired shape. In the illustrated embodif ment the side opposite the discharge opening is inclined downwardly `and outwardly by a series of small steps 31 to provide a surface easily engageable by the users thumb to deflect the Valve stem from its vertical position. The spray tip `ymay be rotatable relative to valve stern` 21, if desired, so that discharge opening 30 may be faced in any direction. Y V

The contents are normally maintained in container 2 by the engagement of sealing gasket 17 with the valve body and valve stem. When spray tip 28 is pressed downwardly valve'body 20 is forced downwardly against the-action of spring 14 to move rim 25 away from the undersurface of Ygasket 17, as shown in Fig. 5.` When the spray tip is Vpressed laterally it moves a portion of; rim 25v away from gasket 17, as shown in Fig. 3. The net result of these two actions is the same. gagesribs 15, -but the spaces between ribs 15 allow free communication between the interior of housing 4 and orifice 27y when valve body 20 is separated from gasket l17. When the spray tip is pressed laterally the position oforilice 27 does not make any difference in the spraying action because'groove 24 always allows communication between orifice 427 and the interior of the valve housing.v v Whenvalve stem 21 is vmoved either downwardly o1"v laterally it will be noted that sealing gasket 17 does Hex slightly. However, the amount of this exure is so slight that it does not have any deleteriouseifectupon'the gasket. TheV gasketgis notftapered adjacent valve s tem 21 and'valve stern 21 is of uniform diameter throughout itsy length, so that the full thickness of gasket 17 tightly hugs the outer surface yof the valve stem'regardless of Vthe Vangle to which thevalve stern may be pressed, to provide an eficient seal that prevents leakage of the contents of the container when the valve stern is angularly displaced. n The only vwaythe contents may pass from the container to the atmosphere is through orilice 27, bore `22, terminal oriiice` 29 and discharge opening 30; Wheneverl the pressure, either vertical 'or lateral,`displacing valve body20 'frorn sealed engagement with gasket 1,7 is released, spring 14 immediately lforces'the valve body back yto its normal, sealed position.n i

' Means for lling container 2 under pressure is shown in Fig. 7. A pressure lll'er connector tube 32 ispressed against top wall16 surrounding opening 18 with'a con-V nectortube seal 33 pressed into sealing engagement between top v16 and the lower'edge of tube 32 in any suitable manner.V Ga'spforced downwardly through tube 32 passes through annular'aperture 18 to exert force against the contiguous portion of gasket 17. The gas pressure forces thel innerv edge of gasket 17, defining aperture 19, downwardly, as indicated at 34, andforces valve body down against spring 14 until lthe spring isy completely collapsed. The gas then ows through the openingv in gasket 17, through the spaces between ribs 15, through -How channel Sand dip tube 9 into the bodyof containerZ. Release of tilling pressure allows the pressure of the Vcontents and the force of spring 14 to move valve body 20 back into its normal sealingposition. The filling operafv tion above Idescribed is not limited to the original iilling operation, but may be utilized also to refill containers that have been emptied of their contents. v

Although I havefdescribed a preferredembodment of my invention in considerable'detail, it will be understood that ythe description thereof is intended to be illustrative,

rather than restrictive, as many details may bey modifiedy or changed without departing from.thespirit or scopeof.

theinvention. For example, the lower seat forspring 14.v

The rim env may be formed differently, as by providing an upstanding ange or by extending the lower portions of ribs v15 inf wardly so that their inner edges confine the lower portion of the spring. It is also possible to omit ribs 15 and provide space for the passage of the contents between the outer edge of the valve and the inner wall of the valve housing, when the valve is displaced, by providing recesses or grooves in the wall of the valve housing. Accordingly, I do not desire to be restricted to the exact construction described.

l claim:

1. An aerosol valve comprising asolid, one-piece valve body, a valve stem of uniform diameter integral with said valve body, said valve stem projecting from said valve body and provided with a `longitudinal bore, extending downwardly into saidvalve body and terminating below the upper end of said valve body, the upper end of said valve body projecting laterally beyond the outer circumference of said valve stem at right angles to said stem, said laterally projecting upper end being provided with an annular grooveLan annularrirn portion of said valve body defining the outer edge of said annular groove, an annular shoulder'portion of 'saidvalve body adjacent the outer surface of said valve stem defining the inner. edge of said. annular groove, said rim and shoulder portionsl be-l ing.k adapted to be seatedin sealing engagement with a sealing` gasket,and an internalorice extendingv through said v valve body, one end of saidoriiice being positioned inhsaidannulary groove and the other end of said oritice communicatingwith the longitudinal borein said valve stembelow theupper end of said valve body.

2,. vAnmaerosol valve, comprising a valve housing having an open top and an opening in its bottom, an annular sealing,V gasket of uniform thickness positioned on the top edge of said valve housing, a solid, one-piece valve body positioned in said-` valve housing, theupper surface of said valve body seating, against the, underside of said annularA sealing gasket, atubular valve stern of uniform crossl section extending, from said valvel body upwardly. throughsaidannular sealing -gasket, said gasket tightlyl hugging the outer surface of said valve stem, the upper,r surfacvef-ofsaid Valve body having an annular groove dimensioned tol provide clearance for the inner edge ofsaid sealing gasket upon downward detiection oft the inner edge ofsaid sealing gasket whereby said valve; body-isyertically displaceable ina ldownward direction.v by.,y externall gas,A pressure exerted against the inner edge. ofsaid vsealing gasket externally of lsaid valve stem, and

` anginternal, orifice extending through said valve bodyi and communicating withthe interior of said tubular valve'v stem.

` 3. An areosol valve for use .with a container havingI an, opening in its` top,y a valve v housing having an open topaligned with the openingin thetop of the container andan yopening invits,bottorncommunicating with the in-4 terior of the. container, a sealing; gasket ,extending across.V

the open top of said valve housing, a valvebody posi-v tioned inA saidv housing and ,L havingv its top Ysurface seated againstjtheunderside of said gasket, the top ,surface of said valve 'body being provided with an annular groove,-v a -tubul,ar valve stern of uniform cross section projecting upwardly from the uppensurface of said valve body` through'saidsealing gasket, the. open top ofsaid housf ing, andvthe opening lin said container, said annular grovegbeing',dirnensioned toprovide .clearanceA for the nneredge ofsaidsealing gasket upon downward deflecfV tion of the inneledge Ofsaidisealing, gasket whereby said valyebody is displaceable from said sealing gasket by ,external` gas.- pressure exerted V against the. vinner edge of said sealing gasket externally of said valve stem-to paring-it,iillingv osaid container, and an internal orice extendingthrough said valveA body between. said tubular valve stem and said annular groove, said valvev body be.-

ingd-isplaceablefrom .saidzgasketpto expose a portion of said groove by vertical or lateral pressure against said valve stern, whereby the contents of said container are forced by pressure of said contents through the opening in the bottom of said housing, the internal orice, and the tubular valve stem, into the atmosphere.

4. An aerosol valve comprising a valve housing having an open top, an openingv in its bottom, and a plurality of circumferentially spaced inwardly extending vertical ribs, an annular sealing gasket of uniform thickness positioned on the top edge of said valve housing, a valve body positioned in said housing, said valve body tapering in width with its widest portion fitting between the inner edges of said ribs, a valve stem of uniform diameter projecting from said valve body and provided with a longitudinal bore, the upper end of said valve body projecting laterally beyond the outer circumference of said valve stem, said laterally projecting upper end being provided with an annular groove, an annular rim portion of said valve body defining the outer edge of said annular groove, an annular shoulder portion of said valve body adjacent the outer surface of said valve stem defining the inner edge of said annular groove, said rim and shoulder portions being adapted to be seated in sealing engagement with said sealing gasket, and an internal orilce extending through said valve body and connecting said annular groove and the longitudinal bore in said valve stem.

5. An aerosol valve comprising a valve housing having an open top, an opening in its bottom, and a plurality of circumferentially spaced inwardly extending vertical ribs, an annular sealing gasket of uniform thickness positioned on the top edge of said valve housing, a valve body positioned in said housing, said valve body tapering in Width with its widest portion tting between the inner edges of said ribs, said valve 'body being recessed intermediate its length to form a downwardly facing shoulder, a spring seat in the lower portion of said valve housing, a spring having its lower end positioned in said seat and its upper end bearing against said shoulder to urge said valve body upwardly into sealing engagement with said gasket, a valve stem of uniform diameter projecting from said valve body and provided with a longitudinal bore, the upper end of said valve body projecting laterally beyond the outer circumference of said valve stem, said laterally projecting Aupper end being provided with an annular groove, an annular rim portion of said valve body defining the outer edge of said annular groove, an annular shoulder portion of said valve body adjacent the outer surface of said valve stem dening the inner edge of said annular groove, and an internal oriice extending through said valve body and connecting said annular groove and the longitudinal bore in said valve stem.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,570,909 Benson Oct. 9, 1951 2,582,262 Loven Jan. 15, 1952 2,631,814 Abplanalp Mar. 17, 1953 2,667,991 Boyer Feb. 2, 1954 2,709,111 Green May 24, 1955 

